Chapter 153: Stealing the Radiant Dragon Pill? Elder Xuan is About to Explode
Miles away from the Body Sect, Elder Xuan remained blissfully ignorant of the storm brewing against him.
Within the hallowed halls of Shrek Academy, deep inside the Sea God Pavilion's master office, golden sunlight spilled through the tall windows. It pooled over the polished surface of a massive mahogany desk. Elder Xuan slouched in a high-backed leather chair, his grease-stained fingers clutching a freshly delivered, top-secret briefing.
Ever since Elder Mu's passing, the heavy mantle of the academy's leadership had fallen squarely onto his shoulders. On the surface, he still looked like the same disheveled, unkempt old man with a penchant for cheap wine and roasted meat. Yet, beneath that sloppy exterior, a newfound sharpness glinted in his eyes—the cold, calculating weight of absolute authority.
Knock. Knock.
The rhythmic tapping against the heavy oak door broke the silence.
"Enter," Elder Xuan grunted, not looking up from his papers.
An inner academy staff member, tasked with academic affairs, pushed the door open with practiced care. He approached the desk with his head bowed, respectfully setting down a thick, bound stack of personnel changes and combat assessment reports.
"Elder Xuan," the staff member murmured, his tone deferential. "These are the complete growth records for the past six months. It covers the current batch of Core Disciples, specifically highlighting Bei Bei and Wang Dong. Following your strict directives, we drastically intensified their live-combat simulation training. The results are quite significant."
Elder Xuan set his battered wine gourd onto the desk with a dull thud. He reached out, flipping open the heavy cover of the report.
His sharp gaze immediately locked onto Bei Bei's assessment page, lingering on the detailed statistics. The boy's soul power had steadily shattered the fiftieth-ranked bottleneck, officially stepping into the world of a Soul King. More, the notes detailed a deep evolution in his mastery over the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon martial soul. Reading this, the deep wrinkles on Elder Xuan's face softened, pulling into a rare, genuine smile.
"Good," Elder Xuan rasped, his voice thick with approval. "This child, Bei Bei, truly hasn't disappointed Elder Mu's expectations. As the captain of the new Shrek Seven Devils, his steady temperament and great potential are the very bedrock of Shrek's future."
His calloused fingers turned the page, the parchment rustling in the quiet office. "And what of Xiao Xiao and Xu Sanshi?" he asked casually, his eyes scanning the text. "If I recall correctly, after Xu Sanshi's Xuanwu Shield bloodline fully awakened, his defensive capabilities saw a rather drastic leap."
The staff member nodded quickly, eager to report the good news. "Exactly, Elder. Xu Sanshi's absolute defense can now withstand the full-force, direct impact of a Peak Soul King without yielding a single inch. Jiang Nannan's agility and cultivation speed have also been astonishing. However, what has shocked the instructors the most is Wang Dong. His Radiant Butterfly Goddess martial soul appears to be reacting to an unknown external stimulus, causing his soul power to skyrocket. His growth rate currently outpaces everyone else in the inner academy."
A low hum of satisfaction vibrated in Elder Xuan's chest. He snapped the thick folder shut, leaned heavily against the leather backrest of his chair, and exhaled a long, slow breath.
"Not bad at all. These brats haven't been slacking off. If they maintain this ferocious momentum, by the time the next Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Dueling Tournament arrives in a few years, they will be the ultimate trump card that shocks the entire continent." His fingers drummed against the armrest, a dark, dangerous glint flashing in his eyes. "When that time comes, we will personally claw back every ounce of glory and honor we were stripped of in the Star Luo Empire."
At the mere thought of that humiliating defeat, the temperature in the office seemed to plummet. Elder Xuan's jaw locked. A vein pulsed visibly at his temple. The cold, indifferent, and utterly arrogant face of Liu Yuan surfaced in his mind, mocking him from the depths of his memories.
He forced the phantom image away, his tone dropping into a deadly serious register. "Is there any news regarding Huo Yuhao?"
"Yes, Elder, and it is excellent news." The staff member reached into his robes, producing a heavily sealed envelope stamped with a covert insignia. "Huo Yuhao's participation in the Ultimate Soldier Project over in the Sun Moon Empire is proceeding flawlessly. According to his latest encrypted transmission, he has successfully begun secretly analyzing the core schematics of their high-tier soul tools. Everything is unfolding exactly as we planned."
Elder Xuan snatched the letter, his eyes darting across the ciphered text. As he read, the rigid tension in his shoulders finally melted away.
"Excellent. This child, Yuhao, is the absolute linchpin to our grand resurgence. As long as he can successfully smuggle the Sun Moon Empire's soul tool technology back to us, Shrek Academy will no longer possess a single glaring weakness." He waved a dismissive hand. "Alright, you are dismissed. Keep a close eye on the Core Disciples. I will tolerate absolutely no slack in their training."
"Understood, Elder Xuan." The staff member bowed deeply, retreating with measured steps before pulling the heavy wooden door shut with a soft click.
The grand office plunged back into a suffocating silence.
Elder Xuan didn't move. He sat perfectly still within the encroaching shadows of the room, listening to the distant, rhythmic lapping of the Sea God Lake's waters against the pavilion's foundation. Minutes bled away in total silence.
Finally, he pushed himself up from the chair. His boots thudded softly against the wooden floorboards as he approached a shadowed corner of the office. He raised his right hand, pressing his palm flat against a seemingly ordinary section of the wall. Soul power flared, activating a highly classified, complex soul tool formation hidden beneath the wood.
Clack.
The wall shuddered, a seamless fissure appearing before sliding open to reveal a hidden, reinforced compartment. From the dark recess, Elder Xuan extracted a familiar, heavily inscribed wooden box. Despite its small size, it weighed as much as a boulder in his hands.
He carried it back to the mahogany desk, setting it down with agonizing care. With a flick of his wrist, the latch popped. The lid swung open.
Instantly, the dim office was bathed in a warm, incandescent white glow. The Radiant Dragon Pill rested on a bed of velvet. It pulsed like a living heart, emitting the faint, ethereal sound of a dragon's roar that seemed to echo directly into the soul.
Staring down at the priceless treasure, Elder Xuan's gaze twisted into a chaotic storm of emotion. Flashes of deep-seated greed warred with fleeting hesitation, only to be entirely swallowed by a dark, near-paranoid fanaticism.
"Elder Mu..." he rasped, his voice taking on an eerie, hollow quality in the empty room. "While you were alive, you constantly preached about focusing on harmony. You were even willing to hand over this unmatched treasure to that wretched outsider, Liu Yuan, all in some pathetic bid to beg for peace."
His fingers hovered over the pill, trembling slightly. "But you were wrong, old friend. So utterly wrong. What Shrek Academy needs to survive this era is not peace. It is absolute, unquestionable force."
His breathing grew heavier, his eyes reflecting the pill's blinding white light. "The children are growing stronger by the day. Yuhao's infiltration is flawless. Everything is falling into place. As long as this old man can finally cross that final, impossible threshold, Shrek will rise from the ashes and stand atop the world once more."
He slowly lowered a single, calloused finger, brushing against the warm, pulsating energy barrier enveloping the Radiant Dragon Pill. The moment his skin made contact, a surge of impossibly dense draconic aura rushed up his arm. The blood in his veins ignited, boiling with a primal, ravenous hunger.
"I have been trapped at the ninety-eighth rank for far too long," he muttered, his voice dropping into a guttural growl. "In terms of foundation, in terms of sheer accumulation over the centuries, I am second to none!"
His fist clenched, the joints popping like firecrackers. "All I lack is that final, heaven-defying push. This Radiant Dragon Pill contains the absolute essence of Elder Mu's lifelong cultivation. It is the crystallization of a Limit Douluo's soul. As long as I can refine it and absorb its power, the world of a Limit Douluo is practically guaranteed!"
A cruel, manic grin stretched across Elder Xuan's face, distorting his usually unkempt features into a mask of pure, unadulterated ambition. In his mind's eye, he was already standing at the apex of the world.
"When that day comes, I will become the undisputed strongest powerhouse on the Douluo Continent." He spat the next words like venom. "Du Busi? Liu Yuan? They will be nothing more than pathetic ants trembling beneath the heel of a true Limit Douluo."
The fantasy consumed him, his eyes burning with a bloodthirsty light. "The moment I achieve my breakthrough, I will personally lead our forces to the Body Sect's mountain gate. I will tear the head off that old freak Du Busi with my bare hands! I will shatter every bone in that so-called genius Liu Yuan's body, drag their broken forms back to Shrek, and force them to kowtow before Elder Mu's grave until their skulls crack open!"
He threw his head back, a raspy chuckle escaping his lips. "Ah... just picturing that glorious scene makes my blood sing."
He could wait no longer. The temptation was a physical ache in his chest.
Elder Xuan took a deep, shuddering breath, forcibly suppressing the manic excitement threatening to destabilize his mind. He moved to the center of the spacious office, sweeping his robes aside to sit cross-legged on the polished floorboards. Without another second of hesitation, he pinched the Radiant Dragon Pill between two fingers, tossed his head back, and swallowed it in a single, greedy gulp.
In the initial moments of refinement, the process was every bit as flawless as he had anticipated.
As he aggressively circulated his Taotie Divine Bull soul power, the pure, unadulterated light energy locked within the Radiant Dragon Pill began to dissolve. It transformed into ethereal wisps of white mist, seeping outward from his core and flooding into his meridians.
The energy was incredibly gentle, washing over his internal pathways like a sacred, cleansing baptism. Elder Xuan could physically feel his aging, worn meridians rejuvenating, soaking up the divine light like parched earth drinking in the spring rain. The sheer density and viscosity of his soul power began to climb at a terrifying rate.
This intoxicating sensation of boundless growth sent him into a state of pure ecstasy. His confidence swelled, his mind eagerly anticipating the glorious moment he would break from his mortal cocoon and ascend as a butterfly of absolute power.
'Yes! This is it! This is the feeling!'Elder Xuan roared wildly in his mind, his closed eyelids twitching as the sheer euphoria threatened to overwhelm him.'This power is unfathomable! I can already feel it... I've touched the barrier of the Limit Douluo realm!'
But as the refinement process explored deeper, the idyllic illusion shattered.
The situation rapidly spiraled out of control. Right as he consumed roughly one-third of the Radiant Dragon Pill's total mass, the previously docile light energy violently rebelled.
The gentle, soothing white glow abruptly flared into a blinding, hyper-dense brilliance. The soothing streams of energy flowing through his body instantaneously transmuted into torrents of scalding, liquid magma.
"Hiss—!"
Elder Xuan's eyes snapped open, his face contorting into a mask of pure agony as a suppressed groan tore from his throat. Devastating waves of tearing, burning pain ripped through his meridians, threatening to shred them from the inside out.
'What is happening?!'panic flared in his mind.'This energy is supposed to be perfectly peaceful!'
Despite the sudden terror gripping his heart, Elder Xuan ruthlessly bit down on his tongue, using the sharp pain to force his wavering consciousness into focus. He pushed his Taotie Divine Bull soul power to its absolute limits, desperately attempting to suppress and guide the rampaging light. He convinced himself this was merely a final tribulation—a necessary crucible of pain one had to endure to shatter the shackles of a Limit Douluo. As long as he gritted his teeth and survived, victory would be his.
But reality proved far crueler than his delusions.
The catastrophe unfolding within his body completely bypassed his ability to control it. Second by agonizing second, the holy light grew increasingly feral. When his dark, gluttonous Taotie Divine Bull soul power clashed against the extreme purity of the radiant draconic aura, they didn't just fail to fuse—they violently, explosively repelled one another.
Massive beads of cold sweat poured down Elder Xuan's forehead, soaking his collar. His complexion rapidly shifted from a flushed crimson to a sickly, deathly pale, before finally settling into a horrifying, suffocated shade of blue-purple. The soul power trapped inside his body had turned into a stampede of terrified, maddened beasts, violently crashing against his internal organs and fracturing his pathways.
Yet, what terrified him to his very core was a sudden, horrifying realization.
Hidden deep within the core of the Radiant Dragon Pill was an ancient, domineering will—a supreme consciousness that looked down upon him with absolute disdain. It was actively, mercilessly expelling his century-old foundation, treating his Taotie soul power like a filthy parasite that needed to be purged.
"No... I can't... I can't suppress it!" he choked out, blood leaking from the corners of his mouth.
Elder Xuan's bloodshot eyes bulged from their sockets. It felt as though an active, apocalyptic explosive had been violently shoved into his dantian. The sickening sensation of physical expansion and tearing flesh intertwined, pushing his body to the absolute brink. The once-stable vortex of soul power in his core had collapsed into a chaotic, volatile black hole, teetering on the edge of a catastrophic detonation that would blow his physical form into a mist of blood and bone.
Blind, suffocating panic seized his mind. He had envisioned himself soaring into the heavens, standing as a god among men. Never in his wildest nightmares did he imagine that this pill—the treasure he had coveted as his ultimate salvation—would transform into his absolute death warrant.
He desperately tried to sever the refinement process, frantically attempting to vent the lethal excess energy out through his pores. But the draconic aura had already locked onto his very soul, paralyzing his spiritual sea and binding him in place. He couldn't even twitch a finger.
'Damn it! Stop! Stop it right now!' Elder Xuan roared in his mind, his mental voice cracking with sheer terror.
The intoxicating fantasies of revenge and limitless power had completely evaporated, leaving behind nothing but the cold, paralyzing dread of his own impending, explosive death.
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